They were in with a big show, and our story prior to the Australian Farmer of the Year awards being announced tipped Tommerup Dairy Farm as a likely winner in the Innovation category due to their fight to gain income from more than just milking cows. See the background story here.
Announced last night, all the heartache of holding onto their 100-year-plus family farm and hard work to develop other income sources has led to Tommerup Dairy Farm winning the Innovation category of the Australian Farmer of the Year awards.
Last night their courage and commitment were rewarded – from the three finalists in the Australian Farmer of the Year AwardsInnovationcategory, they won.
This made Kay and Dave’s hearts sing because without innovation, Tommerup’s Dairy Farm would probably be closed, and not the shining example of regenerative, sustainable farming with the heart that it is today.
They put this faith, and their family’s future, into 20 beautiful, brown-eyed cows that produce the richest milk possible.
Tommerup’s Dairy Farm is a prime example of how a family-run farm can diversify and expand its operation by adding high-value products and a window into sustainability that many people want to experience first-hand. And get that chance at Tommerup’s Dairy Farm.
Agriculture or tourism
“I’ve long felt that as agritourism operators we float along almost in no man’s land – not fitting comfortably into mainstream tourism, and not sitting neatly in agriculture either,” Kay Tommerup explained.
Kay said it was music to her ears that a national agritourism strategy is being launched.
“I’m very fortunate to live in a region that has embraced agritourism. Scenic Rim Eat Local Week, over the past decade, has lifted the profile and the confidence of so many farmers and producers in our region and has been the catalyst for countless ventures into this industry. Eat Local Week brings 40,000 visitors to our region, over $3 million worth of publicity, and injects $2 million into the economy,” Kay continued.
“On our own farm that equates to almost 3000 visitors and incredible product sales. As a region, we support, encourage, and celebrate collaboration. We’re not competitors, we’re in this together.
“As an industry, we need recognition from all levels of government that agritourism is farm diversification.
“It’s farmers using their resources and skills to build resilience in the face of a changing landscape – environmental, climatic, social, and financial. It’s not a shift away from agriculture, but rather a move to create a farm business that can withstand the challenges of the future.
“Currently, to grow our agritourism business, we are forced to choose between farming and tourism. Agritourism isn’t a change of use, it’s a change of mindset. It’s a change in the way we promote and value our industry, our farm product and our produce, and it’s time it was recognised that way.
“For independent farmers to keep farming land for agricultural use, change is needed from all levels of government working together to achieve a set of guidelines that allow farmers the right to farm and to build a connection with their customers right there on the farm.
“Farmers must have a seat at the table for those discussions to create a meaningful reform process.
“We live this, we know what we need to take our businesses to the next level, to keep farmers farming. There are farmers with agritourism businesses across Australia waiting to hit the go button, to expand their offering but they are drowning under overbearing outdated regulatory frameworks that don’t recognise the needs of agriculture in modern society.
The Scenic Rim has become an incubator for farmers wanting to diversify into value-added farm businesses. The culture within the region, supported heavily by the Economic Development and Tourism team, encourages farmers to move in this direction and provides platforms such as Eat Local Month.a
“The camaraderie between producers fosters innovation, collaboration, and a sense of pride amongst our community. Let us keep moving forward,” Kay added
Farmers now need recognition, at the local and state levels, that the current land use planning framework must be reviewed and refreshed to allow farmers to diversify and add value to their core farm business, without the need for a material change of use.
Farmers moving into agritourism is a change of mindset, not a change of use.
